Affording Travel Interview: What Real Au Pairs Say

If you’re single and penniless, working as an au pair may just be the best way for you to travel the world. Even though you’ll be thousands of miles away from home, you’ll ideally have a new home and a new “family” abroad.

What’s an au pair?

An au pair looks after the kids — it’s sort of like babysitting, except you’ll do it abroad and you’ll most likely live with the family.

Pros of working as an au pair

You’ll have secured a job before you leave home.

You won’t have to worry about housing and food.

You may get other non-monetary perks like transport, phone, etc.

You’ll also earn some “pocket money”.

If you’re not used to paying all expenses yourself, this experience will serve as some sort of training wheels for budgeting. You won’t have to worry about running out of rent money no matter how much you spend going out.

If you get along with the family, you’ll have a built-in support system.

You’ll be working with kids.

Cons of working as an au pair

The process of finding the right family and getting the right visa can be quite complex.

If you don’t get along with the family, it can be awkward and uncomfortable.

Work-life balance can get tricky when you work where you live.

You’ll have limited time to travel and explore.

The actual pay is low, even though you’ll likely get lots of job perks.

You’ll be working with kids. ;)

What is it like to work as an au pair?

Obviously, this is one of those things where your mileage may vary depending on many factors, like the family, the country, the pay, etc. So a good way to get an overview is to listen to what a few au pairs have to say about the experience.

Without further ado, here we go…

Where and how long did you work? How many kids did you look after?

Ashley:I looked after three girls in a town outside of Paris for nine months.

Alex: Karlsruhe, Germany for one year; four kids (2, 8, 11, 15).

Danielle:I worked in Paris, France for 10 months, looking after one five-year-old boy.

Hanley:Dorfen, Germany (just outside of Munich) with three little girls. I had a contract for a year but had to leave early due to an injury.

Ellora: 6 ½ months in Granada, Spain, looking after a 1-year-old girl and a 3-year-old boy. (Currently still here.)

Most au pair opportunities are in Europe, although you can also find jobs in Australia, New Zealand, the U.S. and Canada.

Ashley with the kids in Paris.

How many hours did you work in a day and how many days off per week did you get?

Ashley: On Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays I worked around five hours a day, and on Wednesdays and Sundays I worked about nine hours. I usually had Saturdays off.

Alex: Five to eight hours per day, Sundays off (+ 30 paid holidays throughout the year).

Danielle:I worked four hours a day Monday-Friday (sometimes more or less) and I had weekends off.

Hanley: We stuck to my contract after a discussion about a month in — six hours a day, 30 hours a week. I was always off weekends.

Ellora:I work five to six hours on an average day and have one full day off per week.

Any duties on top of taking care of the kids?

Ashley: I tutored the girls in English and Spanish, cleaned the kitchen and cooked dinner almost every night. I also took the youngest girl to all of her appointments and sport practices.

Alex: Some chores, mostly vacuuming and folding laundry.

Danielle:No.

Hanley:Light shopping. They had a cleaning lady so I didn’t have to do housework. They had me prepare fruit salad at night for daily breakfast and sometimes put the washing away, but that was really it.

Ellora:Teaching English was the main reason my host family wanted an au pair. I only ever speak to the children in English (despite them not knowing English in the beginning) to try and immerse them in the language as much as possible and take advantage of their brains being at that “sponge” stage where they pick up anything and everything.

Au pairs often help with some housework. But again, this depends on your negotiations with the host family.

Besides lodging and food, what other job perks did you get?

Ashley: My host family was very generous: they paid for my flight from the U.S., my cell phone bill and my French classes.

Danielle:My own apartment, travel with family, paid vacation, health insurance, covered public transportation, my plane ticket to Paris, French classes, and just having the coolest family in Paris.

Hanley: Health insurance and a cell phone.They also paid for half of my flight and for my German language course. (However all of this is negotiable.)

Ellora: My host family eat out a fair bit, at least more than I was used to before, so I would definitely consider that a perk. Also, my “host parents” are more like friends to me, so occasionally the kids stay with grandparents while my host parents and I go out at night.

Au pairs usually live with the host family and eat the family’s food. Some au pairs (like Danielle) get their own living spaces.

What experience did you have in child care before your au pair gig?

Ashley: I babysat as my main income in high school and also worked as an au pair every summer in college.

Alex: Some babysittting gigs

Danielle:I volunteered at a children’s home in Peru, I worked at a summer camp in Russia, and I worked at a children’s center, throwing birthday parties and running classes for children 1-5 years old. I also used to babysit my youngest sister all the time.

Hanley: I am licensed in my state, I have CPR and babysitting certs and have been around children my entire life. I have worked a few nannying jobs in my area before leaving.

Ellora: Babysitting from the age of 13 and (not childcare experience but…) having an interest in children for as long as I can remember.

There is no universal requirement for au pairs to have experience in childcare. However, having some experience should help you find work.

What’s your top tip for choosing the right host family?

Ashley:Make sure you talk with the family on Skype before signing a contract. And don’t forget to negotiate for what’s important to you, whether that be paid-for French classes or your own apartment. You won’t get everything you want, but it’s always a good idea to negotiate.

Alex: Go with your gut; if something seems off when you are only in the interviewing process, it’s not going to be a good fit.

Danielle:Follow your gut when choosing a family; if it doesn’t feel right then don’t do it. There’s nothing worse than being stuck with a family you don’t like. It can really turn an awesome opportunity into a miserable experience. Also, make sure you are getting paid enough for wherever you are living.

Hanley: Go with your gut. That is the biggest advice I can really give anyone. Don’t make yourself out to be someone you’re not. You’ve got to live with these people and you don’t want to have to be pretend.

PS: DO RESEARCH! There are still risks associated with moving abroad, do your research and know who you are going to and the area in case of any emergencies. 911 in Germany is 112.

Ellora: Take your time! Be organised in starting the search for a host family early, so you can take time to talk to many different families and really decide which is right for you, rather than rushing into something. Definitely Skype them at least once before making a final decision and clarify all details (pay, hours, dates, etc.) before you agree so there is no confusion.

Want to learn more about working as an au pair?

Check out these blog posts written by my lovely interviewees on the subject:

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Comments

I’m looking at becoming an au pair in 2016 and just made a profile on aupair-world.net. should I message several families at once ? Or message one that I like, wait for a reply, and Skype with them before messaging others? Just not sure how to go abouts finding a good host family lol

Hi Crystal, I personally haven’t been an au pair. But from my experience in finding free travel accommodation, often there’s a lot of competition, so you probably should message several families at once until you get a confirmed gig. Treat it like applying for jobs and sending multiple possible employers copies of your resume.

Hi Ellie, from what I can tell au pairs don’t get paid much cash. I suppose it’s possible to use your au pair allowance to cover your student loan payments and your living expenses. It’s all a matter of budgeting. And of course it also depends on how much your au pair allowance is and how much your student loan payments are.

If you’re concerned about paying off your student loans, maybe you should look into better-paying jobs abroad instead, like teaching English.

Hope that helps! Sorry if that doesn’t answer your question. I have never been an au pair myself and I don’t think the girls I interviewed check this post regularly.

Hey! I’m an au pair and have a bunch of student loans. I just talked to my student loan provider about my options and she suggested a deferment, which basically means that I get a year grace period until I have to start paying my loans. They do tack on another grand or so to your loan, but in my opinion, it’s worth it. :)

I have recently looked into Au Pair and have found a cute little family in Italy to go spend a year with. It’s been something I’ve wanted to do for ages and now finally feel I need the break and am ready for the challenge. I’m so excited for this opportunity to travel and be a tourist whilst also living a normal day to day life in Italy. Even though I’m yet to go and have no experience I recommend trying it even just once to anybody :)

Au-pairing is something I have real issues with: it’s pure exploitation, in my opinion. 9 hours a day looking after multiple children- some of whom are infants!- and only one day off a week? That isn’t what an au pair should be doing, it’s what a daycare or a full time nanny should be doing (and being paid accordingly for).

Minimum wage in Germany for the hours these girls are doing would be around €300/$400. Even factoring ‘room and board’ (which costs the family almost nothing), it’s slave labour.

I guess if you love kids or really want to be immersed in another language it makes sense, although most au-pairs I know spoke English pretty much constantly. Generally though, I’d say you’re far better off getting a part time job at home and then going travelling afterwards. You’ll have more cash and a heck of a lot more freedom!

Thanks for sharing your opinion, Jo! It may be more useful to think about it as a work exchange arrangement rather than a straight-out job. Many hostels all over the world have similar work exchange programs, providing food and board in exchange for getting free labor. Whether it’s exploitation or not is something for the worker herself to judge, I think. It’s a way to travel “for free” if you’re broke and you’d rather be working somewhere exotic rather than at home while you’re saving money to travel someday. It all comes down to preferences, really.

Hi! Thanks for the article. It really helps. hope I can land in an au pair job once I graduate. There might be little time to travel when you’re working, but I think living in a foreign country for many months is a valuable experience in itself! :)